The present disclosure is directed to a feed head for strapping machines. More particularly, the present disclosure pertains to a modular feed head having a reversing motor.
Strapping machines are well known in the art for securing straps around loads. One type of known strapping machine includes a feed head having a feed and tension assembly mounted within the frame of the strapping machine. Also mounted to the frame is a sealing head and a strap chute through which strapping material is fed. The feed and take-up assembly feeds strap through the feed and sealing heads, and into and around the strap chute, until the strap material returns to the sealing head to form a loop around the load. The strap end is then gripped and the feed head pulls or “takes up” the strap snuggly against the load. The machine then enters a tension cycle during which tension and drive wheels are engaged and tension is applied to the strap to constrict the strap loop about the load. The overlapping strap courses are then secured to one another by, for example, heat sealing, welding or the like, at the sealing head, to create a sealed, tensioned loop around the load. The strap loop is then cut from the strap feed and the load is discharged from the machine.
The process of engaging the tension and drive wheels to grip the strap in order to constrict the strap around the load has heretofore been performed through the use of a motor, solenoid, air cylinder, hydraulic cylinder, or other like mechanism, separate from the tensioning mechanism and the feed and take-up mechanism, that is capable of moving the tension wheel into and out of the plane of the strap. Thus, in addition to the feed and take-up mechanism and the tension mechanism, there is an additional mechanism for moving the tension and drive wheels into and out of engagement with one another. These additional motors, solenoids, and the like, while effective, often add to the complexity, weight, and cost of the strapping machine, as well as increase the amount of downtime necessary for replacement or maintenance of the strapping machine.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to have an improved feed head that is less complicated and less costly than previously known. Such an improved feed head would be easy to install and use, and minimize the amount of downtime needed for equipment replacement or maintenance.